Self-Portrait

Paul Gauguin prints bring bold colour, flat shapes and dreamlike stories into your home, from the Breton countryside to the islands of Tahiti. Gauguin was a French Post-Impressionist and Symbolist who left a career as a stockbroker to paint, and whose search for a simpler life led him to Brittany, Martinique and finally the South Seas. Our collection of fine art prints includes his Tahitian paintings, Breton scenes, still lifes, portraits and woodcuts.

About Paul Gauguin

Eugène Henri Paul Gauguin was born in Paris on 7 June 1848. His family moved to Peru in 1850, where he spent a privileged early childhood that left a lasting mark. Back in France he went to school, served at sea, and in 1871 became a successful stockbroker in Paris. He married the Dane Mette-Sophie Gad in 1873 and began painting in his spare time.

He exhibited with the Impressionists in the early 1880s, and after the financial crash of 1882 turned to painting full-time. From 1886 he worked at the artists' colony of Pont-Aven in Brittany, where he developed a bolder style of flat colour and strong outlines, and he also painted in Martinique. In 1888 he worked alongside Vincent van Gogh, painting him at work on his sunflowers.

In 1891 he sailed to Tahiti, then a French colony, seeking refuge from Western civilisation, and except for a return to France in the mid-1890s spent the rest of his life in the South Seas. His last years in Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands were marked by illness and poverty. He died at Atuona in the Marquesas on 8 May 1903. His fame grew after his death, helped by the dealer Ambroise Vollard.

Style and Subjects

Gauguin used bold, flat areas of colour, strong outlines and simplified forms, a style sometimes called Synthetism. His colours are vivid and expressive: deep blues, glowing oranges, pinks and greens chosen for feeling rather than realism.

His Tahitian paintings show people, landscapes and spiritual themes in a dreamlike way, mixing everyday life with myth and religion. He also made pioneering woodcuts, ceramics and sculpture, and his work deeply influenced Picasso and Matisse.

Famous Works

• Vision After the Sermon (1888), Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh. Breton women see Jacob wrestling the angel on a red field.
• Vincent van Gogh Painting Sunflowers (1888), Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam. His friend at work on one of his famous sunflower pictures.
• The Yellow Christ (1889), Buffalo AKG Art Museum. A yellow Christ on the cross in the Breton countryside.
• Ia Orana Maria (Hail Mary) (1891), Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. A Tahitian Madonna and Child greeted by women.
• Tahitian Woman with a Flower (1891), Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen. One of his first Tahitian portraits.
• Manaò tupapaú (The Spirit of the Dead Keeps Watch) (1892), Buffalo AKG Art Museum. A young woman lying awake as a spirit watches.
• Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? (1897), Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. His great frieze-like meditation on life, painted in Tahiti.

Decorating with Gauguin Prints

Gauguin's Tahitian paintings bring warmth and bold colour to living rooms, bedrooms and sunrooms, and suit both modern and bohemian interiors with natural textures, plants and wood. A print such as Arearea (Joyfulness) or Two Tahitian Women makes a striking focal point.

His Breton scenes and still lifes, such as Nature morte aux pommes, suit kitchens, dining rooms and studies, and his woodcuts make a strong group in black frames.

FAQ

What art movement was Paul Gauguin part of?

Gauguin is associated with Post-Impressionism and Symbolism. His flat colour and strong outlines are sometimes called Synthetism.

Why did Gauguin go to Tahiti?

He went to Tahiti in 1891 seeking refuge from Western civilisation and a simpler life. He spent most of his remaining years in Tahiti and the Marquesas Islands.

Was Gauguin a stockbroker?

Yes. He worked as a successful stockbroker in Paris from 1871, painting in his spare time, until the crash of 1882 led him to paint full-time.

What is Gauguin's most famous painting?

Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? (1897), in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, is often called his masterpiece.

Where can I see Gauguin's paintings?

Works are in the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Scottish National Gallery and the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek.

Related Artists

• Vincent van Gogh: friend he painted with in 1888
• Émile Bernard: fellow painter at Pont-Aven
• Paul Sérusier: Pont-Aven painter who carried his ideas to the Nabis
• Camille Pissarro: Impressionist who encouraged his early painting
• Henri Matisse: modern master influenced by his colour